Those of the Otherworld
by Vague Apparitions
Summary: Partially AU. Somewhat of a *challenge* inside. Serial of one-shots. As he confronts strange creatures, Danny finds that there is more surrounding us than meets the typical mortal eye, and that far more frightening beings than ghosts exist.
1. Blind

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom. Tragic.**

**Author's Notes:** I don't even know what this is (other than evidence of a sick obsession with Northern European mythology). Enjoy.

* * *

**Blind**  
**A One-Shot  
****"Those of the Otherworld" Series**

"Did you ever consider," the Other Danny said in a voice unlike the regular's, "that there are more beings than ghosts and humans? That there is a world you cannot force your way into? Only one kind can get in and get out, unless we decide to steal."

"H-how did you. . . ?" Danny stuttered. The Other Danny laughed.

"Perception," the creature replied, "can be easily altered. Enchantment is easy – well, of course, not for _your_ lot. . . or _lots, _in your case. I could swallow up your life if I wanted to. You could be gone in a moment, and no one would know or care."

Danny's hand was soon illuminated by ectoplasmic energy – he was ready to shoot this _thing_ at any moment. The target scarcely seemed to notice.

"I could numb your mind. I could drown you, slit your throat, set you aflame, do anything I pleased, and you would never know. You wouldn't hear your screams. You wouldn't hear my laughter. I could bend you to my will, make you do as I say, and you would never protest. I could spirit you away, far away, where centuries would pass like seconds before your Seeing, mortal eyes, where your life is nothing more than the ghost of a shadow, a slurred mess of obscured rememberances."

Danny was taken aback by the Other Danny's sadistic musings. He did not attack it; rather, he was curious. A few minutes ago, this being looked entirely like some kind of humanoid monster, a willowy, somehow nightmarishly beautiful thing, impossibly tall and nearly-skeletal. Its curved claws, long and slender like elongated branches, seemed as sharp as daggers, able to pierce flesh as if it were butter. Its eyes, set into its bony face like onyx stones, had no pupils, no whites, no irises, and twinkled with an animalistic characterization. Then, upon confrontation by the ghost boy, the creature's features shifted, melted until they precisely mirrored Danny's own, yet its cruel, jagged-tooth smile and voice remained the same. What was it? What was it talking about? Was it _insane_?

_Yep_, he thought. _Definitely insane._

"Dude, what are you even talking about?"

"Something needs to be done with you," said the Other. "You See, for you are a spirit. Yet you are human; thus, a mortal, and you must be dispatched, for mortals cannot see us."

"Dispatched?" Danny repeated. His vocabulary was nowhere near as extensive as Jazz's or even Sam's, but being "dispatched" did not sound pleasant.

"Oh, yes," the Other Danny answered, brandishing one of its claws and grinning its Cheshire-grin. The claw slowly reached for Danny's face, yet Danny sharply jerked backward into the air, avoiding its touch. "One way or another."

Suddenly, Danny felt his back against the ground. Utterly bewildered, he tried to regain his bearings. His thoughts were jumbled – it was as if his brain had ceased to function correctly, and he could no longer think or act, let alone fight. A sudden tug at his ankle alerted him to the fact that the Other had him in its hold. The claws were at his throat, then his cheek, leaving shallow incisions as they ran along Danny's pallid skin. Danny knew enough in his confusion to feel something build inside him gradually, yet quickly. Terror. Fear. A will to survive.

"Blindness is suitable for now," it hissed, revealing the layers of razor-teeth within its mouth as it spoke, like those of a shark or a lamprey. Danny could not entirely process the monster's appearance or speech; however, the instinct of fight or flight prevailed over the thing's power.

Danny screamed – or so he thought. The scream was hollow in his ears, like an echo, and lasted for what seemed like ages. When the air had departed from his shriveled lungs, Danny suddenly felt liberated. There was nothing upon him – no creature nor its claws – and he finally felt free. The murk in his mind was slowly clearing, receding with the consistency of syrup, freeing the binds on his thought. He felt both strong and weak, for though he could now perceive and move, his thought was still lagging and his motions were slow and feeble.

The creature had not only recoiled from Danny's Wail; it was now in its natural state. It let out a gutteral growl as it laid upon a brick wall in the alley where the two had met and it bared its harsh teeth. Physically, it was now no stronger than Danny, yet it lashed out at him with its claws, attempting to win the battle still. Danny gripped the monster's wrist as firmly as he could. Ice crept up the thing's arm, causing it to let loose bloodcurdling shrieks.

"Those with the Sight must no longer See," it condemned at last. The ice consumed it entirely, silencing it, most likely killing it.

Danny, with ectoplasm dripping from his wounds and with little strength, reverted to his human form and began to slowly walk home with shaking steps, using walls and trashcans and whatever was available for temporary support when necessary.

He kept his eyes upon the sidewalk as he went, daring not to look up at those surrounding him, for fear that one may be of the Otherworld.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Hm. Well, this is going to stay a one-shot unless I decide to make this a collection or something. If you honestly want to see this continued, you may pick it up only if you: 1) **credit me**, 2) **let me know you're doing it**, and 3) **do the research on faerie myths**. Anyone and everyone can write their own version of a sequel or continuation or something, so don't ask for permission, but please do let me know if you want to do something with this, just so I can read it.

I guess that's almost a challenge or something, right? Eh. Sorta.

Please review, I guess.


	2. Pretty Monsters

**Disclaimer: Danny Phantom is not mine.**

**Author's Notes: **Well, I've decided to make this a collection of one-shots. The challenge is still there. Just make sure you credit me with the series.

This one-shot jeers at Mary Sues. It does take place before "Phantom Planet." I hope you enjoy it. :D

* * *

**Pretty Monsters**  
**A One-Shot**  
**"Those of the Otherworld" Series**

She was perfect, with the figure of a model, with eyes that shone like polished topaz, and with features so delicate and skin so flawless, a doll would envy her. Her hair was a river of gold, a waterfall of locks and fine braids down to her thin waist. This girl's every movement was saturated with grace, poise, and elegance. She put Paulina to shame.

"Oh, don't tell me you're drooling over this one now," jeered Sam. Danny immediately broke his hormone-permeated gaze and faced his friend.

"N-no! She's just. . different," Danny explained sheepishly.

"And hot, dude," Tucker said. "Don't forget to mention_ hot_."

"Well, um, I've just. . . I've never seen_ her_ around here before."

"There are tons of those fashion-obsessed, superficial clones at the mall, Danny. She isn't anything special."

"Danny, you'd better get a grip on your pants," Tucker advised as he ignored Sam, his face lighting up, "because she's coming over here!"

Sam laughed humourlessly as she took the final bite of her veggie burger. She stood, picked up her tray, and said, deadpan, "Whatever. I have to go gag now, so I'll see you guys later. Meet me in the bookstore when you're done acting like idiots."

"Oh, hello there," the girl greeted flirtatiously. Her voice was melodic; it could rival a nightingale's in its loveliness.

"H-hi," Danny stammered, blushing.

"So, do you like technology?" Tucker asked her, grinning.

"I don't know much about it," the girl responded. She batted her eyelashes at Danny. "My name is Aurelia. What's yours?"

"Tucker!" the self-proclaimed tech geek practically shouted.

"Danny. Um, d-do you want to sit with us?" Danny made sure his pants were intact, and hadn't phased through his chair.

Aurelia nodded, intently grinning a heartwretchingly beautiful smile, and took Sam's vacant seat. She said, "I just moved here."

"You know," Tucker said, "Amity's not the best place to move, unless you _like_ ghosts."

"I do, but only one," the strange, beautiful girl cooed. She stared straight at Danny, who gulped instinctively. "Do you know anything about Danny Phantom? He's my_ hero_."

_Wait. Weren't her eyes gold before?_ Danny noticed, noticing Aurelia's now-emerald eyes.

"Not really," he answered. He was a little less enamoured now, and a little more uncomfortable. _Maybe it's just the light. Yeah. Maybe. Hm. . . Putting _one_ good word in for myself isn't going to hurt, is it? _"He saves the city _all_ the time, though."

"Oh, I'll bet. He's cute, too." Aurelia grinned wider, and Danny couldn't help but to think of it as somehow familiar, though he couldn't exactly put his finger on why. "But not as cute as you."

"So, uh, want to hang out?" Danny offered.

"Sure, but I'm getting sick of the mall," Aurelia answered. "Would you like to go outside for a bit?"

"Yes!" Tucker practically squealed.

"I was talking to _Danny_," the girl hissed coldly as she glowered at Tuck.

"Thanks – I'd love to, but. . . I can't. My friend wanted us to meet her at the bookstore."

"Only for a moment?" Aurelia purred as she batted her eyelashes over her sparkling, crystalline, azure eyes and pouted. "I just want to talk for a bit. Maybe get your number?"

Danny glanced at Tucker with a pleading look on his face.

"Alright, I'll tell Sam," Tucker grumbled as he stood with his tray. "Don't expect her to be happy about this."

"Thank you!" Danny exclaimed, grinning ear-to-ear. He stood, grabbed his own tray, and disposed of its contents before placing it on top of the pile. He was hanging out with a _girl_, and she was _hot. _Even though he'd have to put up with Sam's ire later, it was totally worth it.

"A moment" turned into a minute, and one minute multiplied into fifteen, then thirty, then forty-five. Soon, an hour had passed, and Danny and Aurelia were in the park, which had to have been roughly two miles away from the mall.

Aurelia occasionally picked dandelions as they went, and she went barefoot in the grass. She took Danny's hand and, smiling mischievously, said, "I'd like to be alone, where no one can see us. Come."

Danny complied, allowing Aurelia to drag him deep an area of the park darkened by trees, assuming that she wanted to make out with him. Finally, she let go of his hand, turned, and her grin widened.

_Is it just me_, Danny thought,_ or did her teeth get _sharper_?_

"Danny, I know your secrets," Aurelia commented casually as she gingerly plucked the miniscule petals from her dandelions with long, slender fingers.

"W-what secrets?" Danny stuttered. "I don't have any s–"

"Oh, hush," interrupted the girl, discarding her bunch of dandelions. Both firmly and gently, she forced him against the bark of an oak tree. She pressed her lips to his, sinking her teeth into his bottom lip. She ran her hands along his chest, digging her nails into his shirt as they went; with her mouth, she brushed along his cheek and neckline until she reached the base of his neck, where she nipped him and drew blood. She lapped the blood, savouring the flavour, and licked her lips before backing away.

"Danny," she sighed, "you are a half-ghost, and you have the Sight. You can see the Folk, can you not?"

Danny was entirely mesmerized. This girl. . She had kissed him. She had touched him like he was never touched before. She was one of _them_. Her beauty was melting slowly, as candle wax burns from the wick. When her loveliness left her, in the place of beautiful Aurelia, there was a creature with blank, opalescent eyes, a knotted mess of long, matted, silvery-white hair, vicious teeth, and grey skin, tarnished with open wounds, from which a blackish liquid was excreted. Even her face no longer retained a hint of beauty – she was a hag, with sunken cheeks and thin, nearly-nonexistent lips.

"Come," she coaxed in a tempting whisper, "come Underground, where you shall have your deepest desires. Forget this life and start anew."

"No way," Danny growled as he transformed. "I know how this works."

"Do you?" Aurelia asked, her voice hollow, like the wind. "Do you know how, if you went with us, you would be treated as our own? Spirits are spirits, Danny. We could offer you the world."

Danny hesitated for a moment before denying her once again, "No."

"Would you like your pretty girl back?" she prompted. Her beauty flickered back to life, though now, it seemed more like a mask. "Come, Danny. Come, and have all you could ever dream of."

Aurelia took his hand and gently glided him toward her. Danny was entranced, entirely bewitched by her superficial hoax. He desperately wanted to see her for what she really was, to realize exactly _what_ was touching him – a monster, a hideous creature, a crone.

"Get away from me!" he shouted, mustering up enough power for a forceful energy blast.

Aurelia screeched and let go of Danny, who flew away toward the mall as fast as he could. As he left, a piercing shriek ripped through the air. Danny's eyes widened and he picked up speed, just for good measure.

When he walked into the bookstore looking disheveled, Sam and Tucker merely raised their eyebrows.

"You're late," Sam said, not looking up from her book. It was an account of the last witch burned in Ireland.

"Sorry," Danny said apologetically.

"Dude, did you score?" Tucker asked.

"I didn't really want to," Danny answered, absentmindedly rubbing his neck. "There, uh, really wasn't much to her."

"I told you, Danny," Sam said, smug. "Those girls are just shallow, superficial monsters."

"You're telling me," Danny agreed.

Unfortunately, Sam didn't know how much of a monster that girl really was.


End file.
